The government of Ghana has debunked allegations that it is “massaging” COVID-19 death figures.
Pressure Group, OccupyGhana, on Tuesday issued a statement alleging it suspects the figures are being massaged.
“There is cause to suspect that the death numbers are being massaged. The reported 54 deaths so far cannot be right. For instance, even though 38 deaths have been reported from the Ashanti Region alone, less than 20 of those deaths are included in the national count!” the pressure group mentioned in a statement.
It added: “If the public suspects under reporting etc, there will be a loss of trust in the reporting system and that will have consequences that will influence public behavioural responses.”
But Presidential advisor on health and member of the presidential COVID-19 task force Dr Nsiah Asare said figures are not generated either by the Ghana Health Service or by the Presidential task force.
Speaking at a Ministry of Information press briefing Tuesday he said: “the figures that you see, that’s what we put forward.”
“We don’t generate any figures from the policy level. The presidential task-force for that matter from the presidency doesn’t generate any figures. There is an implementing agency, so this Covid-19 fight is led by Ghana health service, the teaching hospitals and the ministry of health is the policy level who is also organizing them and then we have a presidential task-force.”
Dr Asare added “we see the figures as you have seen here today and then we then use the figures to plan and monitor whatever is going on. We then target the regions and the districts where we are to send resources.”
“We don’t generate any figures; we don’t manipulate any figures at the presidency or for that matter the presidential task-force level. When the figures are put forward, we take it, plan with it, monitor and then supervise whatever is going on in the country.”
Four more persons have succumbed to the deadly COVID-19, increasing the death toll in Ghana to 58, the Ghana Health Service has announced on Tuesday.
About 229 news cases have been recorded as at June 15, 2020 bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 12, 193, according to Dr. Patrick Aboagye-Kumah, the boss of the GHS at a press conference.
Of the new cases, 70 were from the Ashanti region followed by the Central region with 42 cases and then 34 cases in the Savanna region.
Out of the total figures, 4,326 patients have recovered and discharged leaving the active cases at 7,813.
In his address on Sunday, President Akufo-Addo warned Ghanaians that the “wearing of facemask is now mandatory.”
“With the doctors and scientists telling us that the virus is transmitted from human contact, through talking, singing, coughing and sneezing, which results in sending droplets of the virus from one person to another, residents of these four regions, and, indeed, all Ghanaians, must remember that the wearing of masks is now mandatory. Leaving our homes without a face mask or face covering on is an offence. The Police have been instructed to enforce this directive, which is the subject of an Executive Instrument.”
Source: Daily Mail GH
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